January 27, 2001

For the second time in 9 hours, the third time in 4 days, Willingboro Firefighters were called to the scene of a devastating house fire, this time at 6 Elmwood Court. Numerous calls were received from neighbors that reported the house on fire. Firefighters were called to the scene at 6:53 p.m. and arrived in 7 minutes to find heavy amounts of fire coming from the roof in the rear of the home. Firefighters also located a heavy amount of fire in the kitchen of the home. The incident was even further compromised due to a report of possible persons still inside the home, windy conditions, and a low supply of firefighters. The first arriving firefighters on Ladder 1615 and Engine 1611 immediately called for a second alarm. About 40 firefighters were eventually called to the scene.
Under the direction of Assistant Fire Chief Mark Robertson, firefighters from Squirt 1631's crew entered the second floor of the home with a 1 ¾” handline and encountered heavy amounts of fire, heat, and smoke. Additional firefighters from Engine 1611 entered the kitchen with a 2” handline and found a large amount of fire and smoke. Another group of firefighters from Engine 1613 entered the home and attempted to search for the reported persons that may have been in the home. Eventually the fire became too intense on the second floor and the firefighters were removed from the home. The department’s Ladder 1615 was used to deliver large amounts of water into the second floor.
Once Ladder 1615 was able to extinguish a portion of the fire, firefighters from Willingboro, along with arriving units from Delran, Hainesport, and Beverly re-entered the home. Upon re-entering the home the still were confronted with heavy fire condition in the attic area of the second floor, therefore they pulled a second 1 ¾” handline. Fires in the Cape Cod style home often extend from the first floor into the void space of the attic. Windy conditions aided the fire in making its way throughout the attic. A valiant effort and hard work resulted in the extinguishments of the fire on the second floor and attic area. The fire on the first floor was extinguished as well and the fire was placed under control at 7:43 p.m. The home suffered severe fire damage to the second floor including the loss of a portion of the roof, and heavy damage to the kitchen with smoke and heat damage to the rest of the first floor.
No persons were found after several searches of the home, and later reports from police officers confirmed the contact was made with the family and nobody was reported to be home. One firefighter, Sean Lehner, received a wound to his foot when an object penetrated his boot during firefighting operations. Firefighter Lehner might have been injured by glass entering his boot, but it was found that the injury was probably caused by a piece of metal. He was transported by the Endeavor Emergency Squad to Rancocas Hospital Emergency Room, and was later released after further treatment. The fire is under investigation by Fire Marshall Rod Hardy, and is believed to have started in the kitchen.

[This message has been edited by Assistant 16 (edited 01-28-2001).]

[This message has been edited by Assistant 16 (edited 01-28-2001).]